This invention relates to the field of sanitary devices for use by household pets in depositing waste material and more specifically is directed to use by household cats which inherently require some type of loose material for covering their excreta. In the typical household where the owners of a pet desire to have the animal remain indoors, it is necessary to provide some area for the cat to deposit waste material. Typically, an individual provides a box containing sand or some other type of litter material. Since sand does not provide any deodorizing capability to the smell of the excreta, a commonly used material is a chemically treated litter composition which has the ability not only to absorb some of the excreta, but also to help eliminate undesirable odors.
The primary disadvantage of these cat litter boxes containing a typical litter material is the fact that the litter material reaches a saturation stage, eventually causing an unpleasant smell. Therefore, the pet owner must continually discard the litter material and replace it with new litter material, causing considerable inconvenience for those animal owners living in apartments where the foul smelling used litter material must be carried outside for deposit. Typical household toilets are not designed to receive the litter material.
Another problem with the typically used litter boxes in the prior art is the disposal of solid excreta which tends to remain separated from the litter material. In many instances, if too much solid excreta is in the litter area, the litter material must be replenished even if otherwise it were not saturated with foul smelling liquid excreta.